Load discharging car



'Marh 2,1937. Y A CAMPBELL 2,072,292

LOAD DI SCHARGING CAR INVENTOR. Amm@ CAMPELL March 2, 1937 A CAMPBELL I 2,072,292

LOAD DISCHARGING CAR Filed June 25, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 1N VENTOR.

ARQYLL: @Mpeg/ 1 ATTORNEY.

Mal'dl 2, 1937.- A. CAMPBELL LOAD DISCHARGING CAR l Filed June 23. 193s 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 G y@ 5 mmn h 4 m6 n mw .J m A Q A. nu@ c Q 5, A Y, G. 4 ...B H 1 1 2 M 4 e l G. J4 H M 4, 7.,/1 l 6 9: 64 f o@ i W., ,n

March 2, 1937. A. CAMPBELL LOAD DISCHARGING CAR 4 Sheets-Sheet 44 Filed June 23, 1953 Patented Mar. 2, 1937 f I UNITED STATES PATENT- OFFICE LOAD DISCHARGING CAR Argyle Campbell, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Entel'- prise Railway Equipment Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application June 23, 1933, Serial No, 677,231 Claims.` (Cl. 105-282) My invention relates to improvements in load applied to a ca r having longitudinal centersills discharging cars. I I extending lengthwise through the car, said cen- An object of my invention is to provide an imtersills consisting of a pair of channel shaped proved load discharging car of a type requiring members I2, each having a vertical web wall sec- 5 tightly fitting doors for the hauling of bulk matetion I3 and inwardly directed upper and lowerv 5 rial such as cement, which under certain condiflanges I4. The centersill is surmounted by an tions is free running and under other conditions inverted V-shaped ridge I5 which extends lengthwill arch and pack very tightly above the diswise through the car and divides the car to form charge openings and can only be discharged transversely aligned `hoppers on each side of the l0 through bottom outlets after the arch has been centersill, as indicated at Iii-I6, as hereinafter 10 ruptured. A described. t

An object of my invention is to provide an imlThe vertical side walls of the car are indicated proved sliding door and door operating means at I1, and sloping end walls I8 are provided at whereby the doprs may be conveniently operated each end of the car, said last named 'walls slopand controlled from the sidel of the car. ing downwardly at a steep angle. above the trucks 15 Still another object of my invention resides in of the car. the arrangement of hoppers and sloping floor The upper part ofthe car is provided with a sheets in relation to discharge outlets whereby the suitable roof I9. Intermediate the sloping ends flow of material through the outlets may be con- I8 the car is divided transversely by two partitro-lied and the possibility of the material archtions IIS-I I9 extending preferably intermediate 2o L0 ing in the hoppers reduced to a minimum. the respective side walls from the bottom of the My invention also resides in certain other fea centersills to the top of the car and forming Suptures and details' of construction such as will be ports for the roof I9.y The partitions IIS promore fully pointed out hereinafter and claimed. vide two largeendbins yand an intermediate bin Further objects of my invention will appear of smaller proportions. Access is provided to the L," from' the drawings appended hereto, wherein: interior of these bins by a series of trap doors Fig. l is a side elevational view of a hopper car 2liv disposed in the roof of the car and spaced on embodying my improved construction; opposite sides ot the longitudinal center to pro- Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the car illustrated vide four doors for each of theend bins and two 3U in Fig. l, certain parts of the car being shown in doors for the intermediate bins. 30

section to more fully illustrate the construction; The transverse web sections II9 are suitably Fig. 3 is a fractional view on an enlarged scale coped4 as indicated at 2| (Fig. 7) to straddle the taken through Vthe lower portion of one of the centersilLand on each side of the centertsills the hoppers on aline 3-3 of Fig. 2; web plates are extended downwardly to the lower l Fig. 4 is a fractional view on an enlarged scale plane of-the centersill I2. 'Ihe lower margins of 35 d ofa portion of Fig. 1 showing the lower portion the said webs arereinforced by transversely exof one ofthe hoppers together with certain retending angles 22 and the sections on the opposite lated car construction; side of the'centersills are united by a transversely Fig. 5 is an end view of the lower portion'of one extended lower cover plate 23. of the hoppers asviewed on a line 5-5 of Fig. 3; Referring now to the hoppers I6 of which 40 40 Fig. 6 is a fractional view of a portion of a hopthere are six per carin the particular embodiment per adjacent the door operating and locking shown: These are arranged in transverse aligned -means as viewed on a line 6--6 of Fig., 5; and pairs on the opposite sides of the centersills; but Fig. '7 is a transverse vertical sectional view inasmuch as the construction is identical for the taken through the lower portion of the car and v various hoppers, the description hereafter will 45 on a line 1 -1fof Fig. 3. be coniined to only one of said hoppers. v Referring now to the drawings wherein my im- The said hopper I6 includes an inner vertica proved construction is shown as applied to a hopwall 24 which constitutes a downwardly extenper dump car, A indicates the track upon which sion of the centersill web I3. The outer side of the car is adapted to move; B the trucks at each the hopper includes a downwardly sloping plate end of the car; and the body ofthe car at C. 25 v(Fig. 7) which `extends from the lower por- The trucks B at the respective ends of the car tion of the car side wall I1 to a location subare illustrated by the wheels indicated at I Ilr stantially inalignment with the lower portion According to the present embodiment of the of wall 24 and which is spaced therefrom transinvention, my improved construction is shown as versely of the car for .af/distance sufcient to provide a discharge opening'. Sioping lengthwise of the car from each transverse partition sheet H9 and riveted thereto are sloping hopper plates 26 which slope longitudinally of the car and meet with plates 24 and 25 to form the lower partslof the hopper section. At 'the ends of the`car the sloping floors I8 form one wall of the end hoppers and are extended to the same level as the lower marginal edges of walls 24 and 25.

At the lower portion of each hopper I8 there is provided a frame D which is formed with an upwardly extending wall 21 which overlies and conforms to the shape of the hopper and is riveted thereto. This frame is preferably in the form of a casting, and below the attaching wall portion 21 the casting is formed on the inner sides of the walls on the opposite sides of the frame with a horizontal extending groove 28, said groove being defined by upper and lower horizontal walls 23 and 38 and a vertical wall 3|. 'I'he wall 38' presents a flat surface onthe inner side of each wall which constitutes supporting shelves for a sliding gate E, the latter being adapted forsliding movement lengthwise ofthe car to control the discharge of the lading in the hopper. The gate E. which is preferably in the form of a casting, is mounted for sliding movement in the grooves 28 and extended beyond said grooves and frame to provide a portion projecting beyond one end of the frame D, there being provided a slotted opening 32 in one end of theV frame through which the gate extends. 'I'he lower portion of the last named opening is in the form of a flat wail 33 (Fig. 3) having a surface disposed in augment with and forming a continuation of the lower walls 30 of the grooves 28. The opposite end/ of the frame casting is provided with a ledge portion 34 which also forms a continuation of surfaces 30 and 33 and thereby provides a fiat bearing surface extending continuously on a common level to provide a fiat surface around a discharge opening of rectangular shape immediately below the sliding gate E.

The upper wall of the frame at the outer end thereof and above the slot 32 is formed with an angular shaped recess 35 dened by a vertical depending iiange 35 and a horizontal wall 31, said last named wall extending continuously across the frame from side to side thereof and being disposed somewhat above the lower 'marginal portion of edge of wall 36. The recess 35 isy adapted to accommodate an upstanding wall 38 formed integrally with the gate E, thereby providing that when the gate is positioned to close the discharge 55 fopening, said upstanding wall 38 fits into the recess 35 and the close cooperating relation betweenthe parts provides a sealing joint at the outer edge of the gate to prevent the entry of rain or moisture within the hopper. The gate E is provided at the side edges thereof with runways 33 which flt in the grooves 28, and the lower surfaces of said runways are disposed in alignment with a surface 40 extending from side to side of the door at the inner edge thereof. Ihe upper surface of the gate presents a fiat surface and at its outer edge is beveled downwardly as indicated at 4| for the purpose of displacing any il l' material which might lodge on the supporting ledges and normally interfere with the free operation of the door.

The beveled edge 4I Ais at all times in contact t Y with the load andI as the gate approaches the closed position, the edge of the door eases the material upwardly along the sloping floor I3 of the hopper end wall. It will be noted that the ends of the grooves 28 are sloped to correspond with the sloping door I8 and thus. with the gate inclosed position the angle made between the beveled end of the gate and the sloping floor is slightly in excess of 90 degrees,'thus providing for easement. of the material in advance of the gate and preventing undue packing of the lading at the ends of the slots or under the gate.

'I'he gate on the underside intermediate the runways 38 is provided with a series of teeth 42 which preferably extend continuously from side to side of the gate and form a series of reinforcements for the gate. 'I'he teeth 42 are adapted to mesh with pinions,4343 carried on a shaft 44 extending from side to side of the frame casting and rotatably mounted in bearings 45-45. The bearings 45 are disposed at the sides of the frame casting and preferably formed integrally with walls 46-46, the latter in turn being formed integrally with the frame. hang the frame proper and constitute means for supporting a pair of supplementary guiding rails 41-41, the latter extending beyond the frame casting and beneath the ridge sheets 26 for supporting the gate E in its open or partially open' position.

'I'he guidingl rails 41 are each formed of two angle shaped members 48 and 43 riveted together or otherwise suitably united to provide two horizontal guide walls indicated at 53 and 5l respec- 5 tively. Said lguide walls are arranged to form grooves presenting continuations of grooves 28.

The angles 48 are riveted directly to the walls 46 by means of rivets 52 and the angle 43 is riveted to the angle 48 independently of and beyond the integral walls 46. The said guide rails 41, as will be understood, are spaced transversely of the car a distance corresponding to the width of the sliding gate, and the respective guide rail means on the opposite sides of the hopper are united by a at strap 53 which in addition to forming a The walls 46 overtie for the rails also constitutes a stop for limiting the opening movement of the sliding gate.

A The operating shaft 44 is extended beyond the outer wall 46 of the frame and is provided with a suitable socket 54 (Fig. 5) formed with a plurality of openings 55 for the reception of a removable bar, whereby rotation of the shaft is effected and the gate moved. The openings 55 are preferably disposed at an angle corresponding substantially to the slope of the outerwall 25 of the hopper, thereby permitting the insertion of the bar in such a manner and at an angle to clear the sloping side walls and permit the bar to extend beyond the car sides. For retaining the closure gate in its closed position, I provide a pivotal locking..dog 56 which is pivoted at 51 on a lug 58 disposed above the sliding gate, the pivotal axis of the dog extending at right angles to the plane of movement o'f the gate. 'I'he lug 58 is preferably formed .integrally with an upper extension 59 of wall 46 and on the inner side thereof. The dog is provided with a projection 60 which' extends outwardly beyond the wall 59 thereby providing convenient means for rotating the dog. Said dog is provided with ani arcuate face 6| adapted to register with a correspondigly formed seat 62 on the gate. The parts when in closed position are best indicated in Fig. 6. v l

For the purpose of further assuring maintenance of the locking dog in operative position and providing convenient means for receiving a car seal, there is provided a sealing pin 63 extending through an opening in Awall 4I and 75 through-an inwardly spacedj'wall 64 in the form of va'key slot and the .outer end of sealing pin 63 is formed likewisel andi-has a slot 65 therein for the reception of car seal. The slot 65 of the pin 63 is adapted toflie against an integral wall 66 when the gateis closed and the pin in operative position,saidi'integral wall 66 having a'slot 61 therein adapted to register in alignment with thevslot 65 of-pi`n"'63 thereby permitting of placing a sealing strip through both members.

Below the gate Ithev sloping walls' of the frame are extended ldownwardly as indicated at 68 for 'an` appreciable distance to presentI a funnel shaped discharge cl'iutev which terminates in a discharge outlet 65|v disposedbelow the pinions 43. Around the outlet 69 there is disposed an outstanding ledgelfll, which extends completely around the discharge outlet, and below said ledge on two sides of the opening there is agroove H, said groove 'll being used for the purpose of accommodating the frame of va removable discharge chute which is positioned in the two sides of the groove and bolted or clipped to the ledge-'I0 at the other two sides of the discharge opening. The arrangement of the grooves is such as to present the open end of the groovetowards the wheels and the outer side of the track thereby facilitating the positioning of the removable chute. said edge l0 forms a continuous flat abutment against which the top of the removable chute is adapted to bear when in position. i

The arrangement and construction of the hoppers is such as to minimize the packing of the material in the bins above the outlet openings, due to arching. One of the diiculties encountered in connection with the handling of bulk cement and similar material is due to the fact that the material 4flows very freely when first loaded and therefore provision has to be made for prevention of leakage and for restricting the ow in the desired quantities. On the other hand, when'` the' material has been hauled over a long distance-there is a tendency for the lading `to arch and packin the bins, thereby necessitating the use of large openings and the application of external force to initiate the free -iow of the material. The use of large discharge outlets, however, is not conducive to aproper control of the material as it issues'fromthe outlets, and I have therefore embodied in my construction features in the construction of the hoppers and door openings which are such as to provide the restricted outlets where free flow of material is desired-and also minimize the liability for the material to arch in the hoppers above the openings. It will be noted that in my construction I retain a discharge outletof standard dimension having a comparatively small area and dispose the control gate' on a higher plane and at a location where the opening is of such increased lsize to break the arch, as it will be appreciated that once the arch has beenbroken, free flow of the material commences and the only factor then to be taken into consideration is the proper regulation and restriction of the flow of material.

The arrangement of the hoppers lengthwise of the car, separated by intervening ridge shaped stationary floors.- provides a construction lhaving ample space in which to locate the guide rails and permit ofthe discharge gates assuming a position beneath the stationary oor when moved to open position.

The operation of the device is as follows: As-

suming theA parts to be positioned as in Fig. 6,

the sealing pin 63 is rotated until such time as the flat portion thereof registers with the slot in the wall 46 when the pin is moved lengthwise .in its bearing until such time as it is clear4 of the locking dog 56, after which the locking dog is rotated and moved to an over-balanced position as indicated in4 conventional dotted lines in Fig. 6, and a bar is then inserted in one of the openings 55 of the operating socket 54 and the bar rotated in a clockwise direction thereby rotating the pinions 43 and causing the gate E to move along the slotted guide rails provided.

1. In a railway car; the combination with a discharging hopper; of a sliding gate at the lower Aportion adapted to close the opening, means for extending through the said element and through an adjacent portion of the car structure.

2. In a railway car, the combination with a discharge hopper; of a frame at the lower portion of the hopper; a sliding gate mounted in said frame and said frame having a discharge outlet; supporting horizontal walls on theinner side of the frame for supporting the sliding gate; vertical wall means formed integral with the said frame on either side of the sliding gate; supple-.

mentary guiding and supporting walls attached t'o said frame for supporting the gate when in open position; rack means on the underside of the gate; rotatably mounted pinions for moving the rack means; and a pivotally mounted element pivoted above the plane of the gate to .swing on an axis substantially parallel with the axis of the pinions, said element being adapted to have a portion moved in the path of movement of the gate for retaining said gate in closed position.

3. As an article of manufacture, a frame adapt- .ed to form the lower portion of a discharge opening and presenting in a self-contained unit; a -funnel shape frame presenting flanges on fou'i` vsides for attachment to the hopper sheets of a discharge hopper, and terminating in a Idischarge outlet, said frame having therein runways for a sliding closure including a rack; means for moving the closure and pinions operating the rack of the closure; an operating shaft for rotating the pinions; bearings'for the shaft; pivotal locking member adjacent the outer edge of the closure adapted to move in the path of the closure when the latter is in closed position; and a slotted pin adapted to extend through the frame and through a portion of the locking member,l said pin and the framework having aligned apertures adapted to receive a car seal.

4. In a. hopper car, a discharge outlet includingA l outer sides thereof adjacent above the -slot being provided with cooperating overlapping surfaces to form a. sealing means, said gate on its underside having rack teeth extending from side to side thereof and forming strengthening ribs for Z5 the gate and sealing means beneath the gate for the slotted opening, said sealing means including a ledge extending in the direction of movement of the door a. suicient distance to extend beneath and overlap a plurality of the teeth of the rack. 5. In a railway car' adapted for handling bulk cement and the like, the combination of a hopper and an outlet casting positioned at the lower portion of the hopper, a sliding gate disposed in the outlet casting, said gate and casting having cooperating bearing surfaces for supporting the gate, said gate being of appreciable thickness and formed on its underside with a -series of rack teeth extending transversely to the direction of movement of the door, said sliding gate having one end thereof projecting outwardly beyond the outlet casting and having the opposite end beveled downwardly in the direction of the flow of material from the hopper, the bevel being exposed to the lading and acting to divert the material upwardly as the gate is moved to closed position 6. In a railway car having a discharge outlet,

' 'the combination of a sliding gate adapted to close the outletl means for moving the sliding gate in- 'the outlet, supporting means for the sliding gate including inwardly projecting shelf means formed adjacent the discharge outlet, means for moving the sliding gate along the shelf including rack means formed on the underside of the gate and rotatable pinion means cooperating-with said rack means,`and means for locking the gate in operative position including a locking element mounted on an axis lying substantially Ivparallel With the axis of the pinion means, said locking element having an arcuate portion adapted to register with an abutment formed on the gate.

` 8. As an article ofn manufacture, a frame adapted to form' the lower portion of a discharge the sliding closure extended substantially from side to side of the closure, pinions for cooperating with the rack of the closure, an operating shaft for rotating. the pinions, bearings for rotatably supporting the shaft, and means on the end of the shaft for rotating the shaft, said last named means including a member rigidlyv united with the shaft and having a plurality of socket openings lying at an obtuse angle with the axis of the shaft and thereby permitting the insertion of an operating bar at an obtuse angle to the axis of the shaft.

9. In a railway car, the combination with a hopper defined in part by sloping walls, an outlet casting positioned at the lower portion of the hopper having walls overlying the walls of the hopper and -secured thereto, a sliding gate disposed in the frame and adapted to close the outlet, said sliding gate having rack means on the underside thereof, rotatably mounted pinions cooperating with the rack means for moving the sliding gate, a shaft rotatably mounted in the outlet casting for rotating the pinions, said shaft having one end extending outwardlyI beyond the outlet casting andv formed with a projecting portion extending beneath one of the sloping walls of the hopper, a member rigidly mounted on the projecting portion of the` shaft and having openings therein corresponding substantially to the slope of the outlet walls of the hopper thereby permitting the insertion of a removable operating bar therein at an angle corresponding to the sloping side wall of the hopper.

10. In a hopper car the combination with a discharge hopper having inclined Walls terminating in an opening at the bottom, a slidable gate member for controlling the opening, a frame for supporting said gate, comprising a casting surrounding said opening and having inclined walls secured to thev Walls of the hopper and terminating below the gate to form an outlet of lesser dimensions than said opening, said casting having a slot through one of its 4end walls through which said gate is adapted to slide and having on its opposite end wall a ledge upon which'the forward edge of the gate is supported in closed position,

' said frame casting also having in its two side walls, guide channels for guiding the side edges of the gate, said gate having its forward edge beveled at an appreciable angle in the direction of flow of the lading to divert upwardly any material resting in said guide channels or upon said ledge as the gate is moved to closed position to relieve the gate of interference during its movement.

ARGYLE CAMPBELL. 

